The Anglo-Japanese Friendship Treaty (Japanese: 日英和親条約, Hepburn: Nichi-Ei Washin Jōyaku, The Anglo Japanese Convention of 1854) was the first treaty between Great Britain and Japan, then under the administration of the Tokugawa shogunate. Signed on October 14, 1854, it paralleled the Convention of Kanagawa, a similar agreement between Japan and the United States six months earlier which effectively ended Japan's 220-year-old policy of national seclusion ( sakoku ). As a result of the treaty, the ports of Nagasaki and Hakodate were opened to British vessels, and Britain was granted most favored nation status with other western powers. [1]
Anglo-Japanese relations began in 1600 at the start of the Tokugawa shogunate with the arrival of William Adams, a seaman from Gillingham, Kent, who became an advisor to Tokugawa Ieyasu. He facilitated the creation of a British trading post at Hirado in 1613, led by English captain John Saris, who obtained a Red Seal permit giving "free licence to abide, buy, sell and barter" in Japan. [2] However, during the ten year activity of the company between 1613 and 1623, apart from the first ship (Clove in 1613), only three other English ships brought cargoes directly from London to Japan. The British withdrew in 1623 without seeking permission from the Japanese, and in 1639, the Tokugawa shogunate announced a policy of isolating the country from outside influences with foreign trade to be maintained only with the Dutch and the Chinese exclusively at Nagasaki under a strict government monopoly. [3] The isolation policy was challenged several times by the British, most notably in 1673, when an English ship named "Returner" visited Nagasaki harbor, and was refused permission to renew trading relations, and in 1808, when the warship HMS Phaeton entered Nagasaki during the Napoleonic War to attack Dutch shipping and threatened to destroy the town unless it was provided with supplies.
By the early nineteenth century, the policy of isolation was increasingly under challenge. In 1844, King William II of the Netherlands sent a letter urging Japan to end the isolation policy on its own before change would be forced from the outside. [4] In 1852, United States Navy Commodore Matthew Perry was sent with a fleet of warships by American President Millard Fillmore to force the opening of Japanese ports to American trade, through the use of gunboat diplomacy if necessary. [5] There was considerable internal debate in Japan on how best to meet this potential threat to Japan's economic and political sovereignty, but after Perry threatened to continue directly on to Edo, the nation's capital and to burn it to the ground if necessary, he was allowed to land at nearby Kurihama on July 14 and to deliver his letter. [6] The visit resulted in the Convention of Kanagawa signed on March 31, 1854, which opened the ports of Shimoda and Hakodate to American vessels, ensured the safety of American castaways and established the position of an American consul in Japan. [7]
In early August 1853, Russian admiral Yevfimy Putyatin arrived at Nagasaki with a fleet of four vessels, just one month after the visit to Perry to Uraga in an attempt to force the opening of Japan. At the time, Russia was at war with Great Britain (the Crimean War), and alarmed at the possibility that Russia would obtain the upper hand in Japan, Royal Navy vice admiral Sir James Stirling, commander of the East Indies and China Station led a fleet of British warships to Nagasaki on September 7, 1854. Stirling's flagship was the sail frigate Winchester, accompanied by screw corvette Encounter and paddle sloops Barracouta and Styx.
Stirling was not actually authorized to negotiate a treaty, and the signing of the convention came about due to a series of miscommunications. [8] Stirling initially had two objectives: to find and attack the Russian fleet even if it were in Japanese waters, and to reaffirm Japan's neutrality in the conflict. To this end, he carried a copy of the British declaration of war on Russia, signed by Queen Victoria. However, the Tokugawa shogunate, already cautious of the British in light of the Opium War and recent negotiations with the Americans, assumed that the British were in Nagasaki to demand similar concessions. Stirling brought his own interpreter, Yamamoto Otokichi a Japanese castaway of limited education, and also relied on the assistance of Jan Hendrik Donker Curtius, the senior Dutch East Indies Company factor at Nagasaki. The Japanese were served by Nishi Kichibei, a Dutch language interpreter who had a predilection for altering the tone or content of what he was interpreting. [9]
Specifically, Sterling sought confirmation that Japanese ports would continue to be denied to Russian vessels, at least for the duration of the war, even if this meant that damaged British ships would also be denied permission to dock in Japan for repairs and re-provision.
Assuming that Stirling was in Nagasaki to demand the same concessions as Perry, during discussions in Edo, officials in the Tokugawa shogunate agreed that forming an agreement with the British was not only unavoidable, but that the British could be a powerful force to offset Russian designs on the Kuril islands. Consequently, Stirling was received by the Nagasaki bugyō , Mizuno Tadanori, who had originally been sent by the Tokugawa shogunate to Nagasaki to negotiate with Perry, and who was familiar with the treaty which had already been signed with the Americans. Mizuno's preconceptions on the British intentions were bolstered by Nishi's mistranslations, and over the course of three sessions of negotiations (October 4, October 9 and October 14) the outline of a treaty was drafted, which Mizuno, together with metsuke Nagai Naoyuki signed on October 14.
The "Anglo-Japanese Friendship Treaty" has seven articles:
Article | Summary |
---|---|
I | Opening of the ports of Nagasaki and Hakodate to British ships for provisioning and repairs |
II | Setting dates for opening of Nagasaki and Hakodate, with the British agreeing to follow local regulations |
III | Other ports to be used by British ships only when in distress |
IV | Agreement to abide by local laws |
V | Most favored nation agreement for any future port openings; equal treatment with Dutch and Chinese |
VI | Treaty to be ratified within twelve months |
VII | Once the treaty is ratified, it will not be later modified by future British visits |
Article Six, stipulated that the terms of the treaty were to be ratified by Her Majesty, the Queen of Great Britain and the "His Highness the Emperor of Japan" within 12 months. At the time, shōgun Tokugawa Iesada was the de facto ruler of Japan; for the Emperor to interact in any way with foreigners was out of the question. Stirling concluded the treaty with representatives of the shogun, and the text was endorsed subsequently, albeit reluctantly, by Emperor Kōmei. [10]
In the short-term, the Japanese were satisfied with the agreement, which gave no concessions which had not already been granted to the Americans, and which at least temporarily averted the possibility of immediate military confrontation. However, on the British side, Stirling came under immediate criticism as the treaty made no provision for formal trade relations with Japan, [11] and the question of extraterritoriality for foreigners was vaguely worded. Furthermore, the final clause in the treaty seemed to preclude the possibility of further negotiations. The only opening left to Great Britain was an informal promise that he would send a steam yacht as a present for the Shogun of Japan.
Lord Elgin was sent by Queen Victoria in 1858 to negotiate the trade agreement, using the delivery of the yacht as an excuse to start discussions. This led to the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce of 1858, which allowed the establishment of foreign concessions, extraterritoriality for foreigners, and minimal import taxes for foreign goods. The Japanese chafed under the "unequal treaty system" which characterized Asian and Western relations during this period. [12] The Anglo-Japanese Friendship Treaty was also followed by similar agreements with the Russians (Treaty of Shimoda, 7 February 1855).
The Convention of Kanagawa, also known as the Kanagawa Treaty or the Japan–US Treaty of Peace and Amity, was a treaty signed between the United States and the Tokugawa Shogunate on March 31, 1854. Signed under threat of force, it effectively meant the end of Japan's 220-year-old policy of national seclusion (sakoku) by opening the ports of Shimoda and Hakodate to American vessels. It also ensured the safety of American castaways and established the position of an American consul in Japan. The treaty precipitated the signing of similar treaties establishing diplomatic relations with other Western powers.
Osahito, posthumously honored as Emperor Kōmei, was the 121st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Kōmei's reign spanned the years from 1846 through 1867, corresponding to the final years of the Edo period.
Bakumatsu was the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate ended. Between 1853 and 1867, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as sakoku and changed from a feudal Tokugawa shogunate to the modern empire of the Meiji government. The major ideological-political divide during this period was between the pro-imperial nationalists called ishin shishi and the shogunate forces, which included the elite shinsengumi swordsmen.
Izu Province was a province of Japan in the area of Shizuoka Prefecture. Izu bordered on Sagami and Suruga Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was Zushū (豆州).
Tokugawa Iesada was the 13th shōgun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He held office for five years from 1853 to 1858. He was physically weak and was therefore considered by later historians to have been unfit to be shōgun. His reign marks the beginning of the Bakumatsu period.
The Black Ships was the name given to Western vessels arriving in Japan in the 16th and 19th centuries.
The Treaty of Shimoda of February 7, 1855, was the first treaty between the Russian Empire, and the Empire of Japan, then under the administration of the Tokugawa shogunate. Following shortly after the Convention of Kanagawa signed between Japan and the United States, it effectively meant the end of Japan's 220-year-old policy of national seclusion (sakoku), by opening the ports of Nagasaki, Shimoda and Hakodate to Russian vessels and established the position of Russian consuls in Japan and defined the borders between Japan and Russia.
Unequal treaties refer to a series of treaties signed during the 19th and early 20th centuries, between China and various foreign powers. The agreements, often reached after a military defeat or a threat of military invasion, contained one-sided terms, requiring China to cede land, pay reparations, open treaty ports, give up tariff autonomy, legalise opium import, and grant extraterritorial privileges to foreign citizens.
The Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Japan and the United States, also called the Harris Treaty was a treaty signed between the United States and Tokugawa Shogunate, which opened the ports of Kanagawa and four other Japanese cities to trade and granted extraterritoriality to foreigners, among a number of trading stipulations. It was signed on the deck of the USS Powhatan in Edo Bay on July 29, 1858.
The Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Commerce and Navigation signed by Britain and Japan, on 16 July 1894, was a breakthrough agreement; it heralded the end of the unequal treaties and the system of extraterritoriality in Japan. The treaty came into force on 17 July 1899.
The Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Amity and Commerce was signed on 26 August 1858 by Lord Elgin and the then representatives of the Japanese government, and was ratified between Queen Victoria and the Tycoon of Japan at Yedo on 11 July 1859.
Jan Hendrik Donker Curtius was the last Opperhoofd of the Dutch trading post in Japan (1852-1855), located at Dejima an artificial island in the harbor of Nagasaki. To negotiate with the Japanese government for a treaty, he received the title "Dutch Commissioner in Japan" in 1855.
Abe Masahiro was the chief senior councilor (rōjū) in the Tokugawa shogunate of the Bakumatsu period at the time of the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry on his mission to open Japan to the outside world. Abe was instrumental in the eventual signing of the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854. Abe did not sign the treaty himself or participate in the negotiations in person; this was done by his plenipotentiary Hayashi Akira. His courtesy title was Ise-no-kami.
Gyokusen-ji (玉泉寺) is a Buddhist temple located in the city of Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It is noteworthy in that it served as the first American consulate in Japan. The temple and its grounds were designated as a National Historic Site of Japan in 1951.
The Perry Expedition was a diplomatic and military expedition in two separate voyages to the Tokugawa shogunate by warships of the United States Navy. The goals of this expedition included exploration, surveying, and the establishment of diplomatic relations and negotiation of trade agreements with various nations of the region. Opening contact with the government of Japan was considered a top priority of the expedition, and was one of the key reasons for its inception.
Gaikoku bugyō (外国奉行) were the commissioners or "magistrates of foreign affairs" appointed at the end of the Edo era by the Tokugawa shogunate to oversee trade and diplomatic relations with foreign countries. In essence this was the beginning of the creation of a Ministry of Foreign Affairs after Japan's long period of isolationist policy.
Nagasaki bugyō (長崎奉行) were officials of the Tokugawa shogunate in Edo period Japan. Appointments to this prominent office were usually fudaidaimyōs, but this was amongst the senior administrative posts open to those who were not daimyōs. Conventional interpretations have construed these Japanese titles as "commissioner", "overseer" or "governor".
Gunkan-bugyō (軍鑑奉行), also known as kaigun-bugō, were officials of the Tokugawa shogunate in Edo period Japan. Appointments to this prominent office were usually fudai daimyō. Conventional interpretations have construed these Japanese titles as "commissioner", "overseer" or "governor".
A foreign settlement was a special area in a treaty port, designated by the Japanese government in the second half of the nineteenth century, to allow foreigners to live and work.
The Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Japan and the Netherlands was signed between the Netherlands and Tokugawa Shogunate in Edo on August 18, 1858. It opened several Japanese ports and cities for Dutch trade and confirmed extraterritoriality to Dutch nationals in Japan. It was one of the so-called Ansei Treaties.